Safety vest

ABSTRACT

A high visibility safety vest has a front and back panel connected together by separable and elasticized side panels, the arrangement being such that the garment may be easily separated from the wearer&#39;s body. One or more fasteners can located on each of the side panels, and the front and back panels may be joined at the shoulder of the vest by separable fasteners.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to safety garments and more particularlyto high visibility, detachable safety garments.

2. Description of the Related Art

High visibility articles of clothing typically incorporate combinationsof luminescent and retro-reflective surfaces. It is necessary tominimize the likelihood that a wearer may become caught up or injuredwhen clothing such as a safety vest is caught accidentally or graspeddeliberately. Such garments are designed for use in situations such asterrorism and crowd control and may be used by persons such as police,fire, security, safety, hospital and other public services.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a high visibilitysafety garment, which is designed to prevent entanglement.

According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a safetygarment which comprises front and back panels connected together byseparable and elasticized side panels, the arrangement being such thatthe garment may be easily separated from the wearer's body if part ofthe garment is caught accidentally or grasped deliberately.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the invention may be more readily understood and put intopractical effect, references will now be made to the accompanyingdrawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a front view of the safety garment according to one embodimentof the present invention, and

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the safety garment shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As shown in FIG. 1, a safety vest 10 according to one embodiment of theinvention includes a front panel 12 and a back panel 14 that extend fromthe wearer's shoulders to the hips. The sides of the front panel 12 andthe back panel 14 are joined by two elasticized side panels 16 a and 16b. One or more fastening means 18 a and 18 b are provided along the leftand right elasticized side panels 16 a and 16 b. The tops of the frontpanel 12 and back panel 14 are also joined by separable fastening means18 c and 18 d so that the garment can be easily freed from the wearer'sbody.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the fastening means 18 a and 18 b run fromunder each arm opening to the waist on both the left and right side ofthe vest. Each fastening means comprises first and second mating strips,with one strip of each fastening means being on the front panel 12 andthe other strip being located on the respective side panels.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the fastening means are hookand loop fasteners such as those sold under the trade mark VELCRO™ ortouch tape, so that when the vest is grabbed and pulled, the fasteningmeans can be separated, allowing the front panel 12 and back panel 14 tobe disconnected and pulled off the wearer.

Preferably, the elasticized side panels 16 a, 16 b extend from theopening under the arm to the waist of the vest, allowing a certainamount of pull when the vest gets caught or deliberately pulled whilstworn.

A pattern of reflective, fluorescent or photoluminescent material may beapplied to the vest. Each portion of the pattern may be formed fromstrips of retro-reflective material. Upper and lower reflective stripsmay span the front and back panel. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, theretro-reflective strips 20 run horizontally across the front and backpanels of the vest, and retro-reflective strips 21 run vertically fromthe first horizontal strip over the shoulders of the vest.

Preferably, the body of the vest includes four encircling orcircumferential retro-reflective strips, and a pair of longitudinalretro-reflective strips, each of which extend from the uppermostcircumferential strip of the front panel 12 over the shoulder to theuppermost circumferential strip on the back panel 14.

A zipper 22 is provided which extends from the neck to the waistband 24of the safety garment so that the garment may be easily put on orremoved.

The safety vest may also include an elasticized waistband 24.

The high visibility safety vest is intended to be worn over clothing.

It is preferred that all fabric components used in the manufacture ofthe above mentioned garments shall conform to the Australian Standardfor High Visibility Safety Garments (AS/NZS 4602:1999) or the EuropeanStandard for High Visibility, EN471.

The safety vest may be used during the day or at night and preferablyincorporates fluorescent orange and lime yellow colors for enhanceddaytime visibility. Preferably the vests are made from retro-reflectivefabrics and films that exceed the highest brightness category level ofAS/NZS 1906.4:1997. In a preferred embodiment, 3M™ Scotchlite™Retroreflective films and fabrics are used to ensure visibility at nightor in conditions of poor light. It will be apparent to persons skilledin the art that other suitable fabrics and films are within the scope ofthe invention.

Various other modifications may be made in details of the shape,configuration, pattern or ornamentation of the reflective material, andin the construction of the safety garments without departing from thescope or ambit of the invention.

1. A high visibility safety vest comprising a front and back panelconnected together by separable and elasticized side panels, thearrangement being such that the garment may be easily separated from thewearer's body.
 2. The high visibility safety vest of claim 1 furthercomprising one or more fastening means provided on each of the sidepanels.
 3. The high visibility safety vest of claim 1 wherein the frontand back panels are joined at the shoulder of the vest by separablefastening means.
 4. The high visibility vest of claim 2 wherein thefastening means extend along the length of the panels.
 5. The highvisibility vest of claim 3 wherein the fastening means extend along thelength of the panels.
 6. The high visibility vest of claim 2 wherein thefastening means comprises a first and second mating strip, each striplocated on opposing panels.
 7. The high visibility vest of claim 3wherein the fastening means comprises a first and second mating strip,each strip located on opposing panels.
 8. The high visibility vest ofclaim 2 wherein the fastening means comprises hook and loop fasteners.9. The high visibility vest of claim 3 wherein the fastening meanscomprises hook and loop fasteners.
 10. The high visibility vest of claim1 wherein the vest is made of retro-reflective material.
 11. The highvisibility vest of claim 1 further comprising an opening for the neckand a waist band.
 12. The high visibility vest of claim 1 furthercomprising a zipper that extends from the neck opening to the waistband.13. The high visibility vest of claim 11 wherein the waistband iselasticized.
 14. The high visibility vest of claim 1 further comprisinga pattern of retro-reflective material.
 15. The high visibility vest ofclaim 14 wherein the pattern of retro-reflective material includescircumferential strips on the front and back panels.
 16. The highvisibility vest of claim 14 wherein the pattern of retro-reflectivematerial includes longitudinal strips which extend over the shoulderportion of the vest.
 17. The high visibility vest of claim 14 whereinthe pattern of retro-reflective material includes longitudinal stripswhich extend from the uppermost circumferential strip on the front panelover the shoulder portion to the uppermost circumferential strips on theback panel.